SP3Z/ 



•o 



V'3 



War Vegetable 
Gardening 



and the 



Home Storage 



of 



Vegetables 



PART I-WAR GARDENING MANUAL 
PART II-HOME STORAGE MANUAL 



1918 

Published by 

National War Garden Commission 

The Maryland Building, Washington, D. C. 



Copyright 1918, by the 

National War Garden Commission 



PLAN OF GARDEN 50 by 75 feet, in which careful attention has been paid to proper rotation of the 
season's crops and to a continuous supply of the more important vegetables. 



Hot Bed 


Cold Frame 


Asparagus 


Rhubarb 



ARRANGEMENT OF SEASON'S CROPS 



Peas, followed by Tomatoes 



Peas, followed by Celery 



Onion Sets, followed by Turnips 



Corn, followed by Spinach 



Beans (bush), followed by Beets 



Beets, Yi. row; Carrots, Yt row, followed by Corn 



Turnips, followed by Bush Beans 



Potatoes, followed by Spinach 



Spinach, followed by Potatoes 



Cabbage, with Lettuce and Radishes between, followed by Carrots 



Beans, Bush Lima 



Chard, 54 row; Parsley, J4 row 

Parsnips, % row (radishes to mark row); Salsify, ^ row 

Corn, followed by Kohl-rabi, ]^ row; Cauliflower, Yi row 

Peas, followed by Corn - -- . 

Beans, Bush Lima 

Potatoes, followed by Cabbage 



Tomatoes 



Peppers, 3^ row; Potatoes, Yi row 



Potatoes 



Potatoes 



Pole Lima Beans 
Pole Lima Beans 



Corn 



Corn 



Corn 



Cucumbers 



Squash 



(bush 



crook neck) 



Squash 
(winter) 



Musk- 



melon 



Rows are 30 inches apart. If soil is very fertile rows may be closer. 
Planting was begun at hotbed end of garden and plantings were made a few days 
apart to insure a constant supply of vegetables. Planting table on Page 23. 

' g)GI.A49l368 

FFB ' ' 



PART I. 



WAR GARDENING MANUAL 

As a result of wartime emergency the Home Garden of America has 
become an institution of world-wide importance. The planting and gi-owing 
season of 1917 demonstrated that the products thus raised are essential to the 
feeding of the people of the United States and the Allied nations. Under the 
impetus given by the National War Garden Commission the people of this 
country last year produced a crop valued at $350,000,000 in gardens cultivated 
in backyards, on vacant lots and on otheKland previously untilled — the 
patriotic gift of the war gardens to the nation. \ 

WAR GARDENS HELP SOLVE TRAFFIC PROBLEM. 



The winter of 1917-1918 brought the most 
serious traffic congestion the United States 
has ever seen. This condition has no 
meaning more significant than that the 
gardens of this year must do even more 
than those of 1917 in freeing the overbur- 
dened railroads from the need for trans- 
porting food products. With food shortage 
threatening the allied nations and with 
railroad congestion as an added factor, the 
war garden results of the coming season 
must be several times greater even than 
the vast yield of last year. 

COMMUNITY GARDENING. 

Excellent results are obtained through co- 
operative gardening work. If several fami- 
lies join forces they can reduce the cost of 
gardening, in time, labor and money. Fami- 
lies having adjoining or neighboring garden 
plots may' use one set of tools. To prevent 
clash of convenience it is well to have an 
understanding in advance as to the time 
when each gardener is to have the use of 
particular tools. By this arrangement it is 
possible to have complete equipment at ex- 
pense much less than if each gardener 
bought his own. Money can also be saved 
in buying seeds, fertilizers and spraying 
materials by clubbing together and gaining 
advantage of the lower prices for large lots. 

One of the advantages of doing commu- 
nity work is that it is possible for the gar- 
deners interested in the project to employ 
a man and a team to prepare their gardens 



by plow'ing and harrowing. In this way the 
man and team can be kept busy throughout 
the day and the expense to each gardener 
will be slight. 

On a larger scale this principle should be 
applied to garden plots on tracts of vacant 
land allotted to individuals' in or near 
cities or towns. Each ploi in such a 
tract is a separate garden, belonging to the 
individual or family to whom allotted. In 
many instances the municipal authorities, 
the mayor's war garden committee or some 
similar local organization, will provide an 
expert to supervise work on community 
gardens of this character. This expert will 
give advice and instructions as to prepara- 
tion, planting and cultivation and on other 
technical subjects. 

If an expert is not provided in this way 
it is wise for the gardeners to club together 
and arrange for one at their own expense, if 
the project is large enough to make this 
possible without too great individual cost. 
The help of an expert is of great value. 

School children and parents may work to- 
gether to good advantage on these garden 
plots. In some communities school au- 
thorities allow the children to spend a por- 
tion of the school hours, on, stated days, in 
their garden work. Through co-operation 
with street cleaning departments a munici- 
pal government may arrange to deliver 
manure to war gardeners at nominal cost. 
In at least one important city this is done 
at a charge of $2 per load. 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



.^^. 



^M?. 



ri^:z 










Fig. 1— A community garden which produced excellent results in 1917. The ground was given by a 
manufacturing concern for the use of its employes and the plowing and harrowing were done by 
the company. Expert supervisors directed the work. 



Manufacturing concerns and other enter- 
prises which employ labor on a large scale, 
may make valuable contribution to the na- 
tional food supply by encouraging their 
employes to cultivate war gatdens. Many 
concerns furnish large tracts of land, which 
are divided into individual garden plots. 
These plots are allotted to such employes as 
are willing to cultivate them. Each plot 



and everything it produces are recognized 
as the individual property of its cultivator. 
The company bears the expense of plowing 
and fertilizing these plots and employs an 
expert to have charge. 

It is a good plan for municipal govern- 
ments to arrange for lectures at school 
houses or other places on practical prob- 
lems in gardening. 



HOW TO HAVE A GOOD GARDEN 



Garden Plan 

Have a plan for your garden — drawn to 
scale on paper — before you start, to give 
proper order in planting and enable you to 
buy the riglit amount of seeds in advance 
while the selection is good. 

Put in one general group small plants 
like beets, onions, lettuce, carrots, radishes 
and parsnips. In another general group put 
larger plants like corn, tomatoes and pota- 
toes. Spreading ground vines, like melons 
and cucumbers, which need wider spacing, 
should be put in another general group. The 
reason for this grouping is that the various 
plants in a group need similar general 
treatment as well as spacing. 

In making a plan provide space in which 
to enter costs and yield on the various 
crops. This will give you a complete record 
which will be useful another year. Another 
helpful use of the plan is that it will guide 
you in the rotation of next year's crops. For 
this purpose save your plan for next season. 

In planning your garden formulate some 
definite plan as to what you will do with 
surplus vegetables. Detailed instructions 



for home storage of vegetables for winter 
use are given in Part II of this booklet. 
Detailed instructions for canning, drying, 
pickling and other forms of conservation 
are given in the Home Manual on these 
subjects issued by this Commission. 

Sunshine. 

In the location of a garden it is not 
always possible to choose conditions as to 
sunlight. It is important, therefore, that in 
the arrangement of the various varieties 
of vegetables which are to be planted, due 
care should be given to providing the great- 
est exposure to the sun for those crops 
which need it most. Those plants which 
must ripen their fruits, such as tomatoes 
and eggplant, require the greatest amount 
of sunshine, while lettuce, spinach, kale and 
other leaf crops require relatively less. 
Even these latter, however, should have at 
least 2 to 3 hours a day. 

Vary From Last Year's Plan. 

It is important to remember that plant 
diseases and insects are apt to thrive in a 
spot in which they have become established. 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



For this reason those who make gardens 
this year should take care not to place the 
individual crops in the spot in which the 
same crops grew last year. Varying the 
arrangement of the garden in this way will 
reduce the danger from diseases and in- 
sects. 

SURPLUS PRODUCTS. 
At times, even with the best of planning, 
a gardener will find that his garden has 
matured more of some varieties of vegeta- 
bles than can be used immediatel}'. None 
of this excess should be wasted and there is 
no occasion for waste. If there is no ready 
market for the surplus it should be pre- 
pared for winter by either canning or dry- 
ing. By modern methods either canning or 
drying may be done with little expense of 
time, trouble or financial outlay. By using 
the cold-pack method as small a quantity 
as a single can or jar may be put up in a 
short time. With proper instructions it is 
possible for the housewife to dry a handful 
of peas or beans, sweet corn, a few sweet 
potatoes or turnips or small quantities of 
many other vegetables with practically no 
expenditure of her time. Explicit and sim- 
ple directions for canning and drying are 
given in the Manual issued by the National 
War Garden Commission. 

THE SOIL AND MANURES. 

The back yard gardener must use the soil 
he has, but he can improve it if it is poor, 
and he must do this as far as possible. 
Stable manure will help even the richest 
soil, and you are not likely to use too much 
of it. During a single season professional 
gardeners apply as much as six inches of 
it. From 400 to 600 pounds can be used to 
advantage on a plot 20 by 20 feet. Coarse 
manujje should bcs applied and thoroughly 
plowed or spaded under in the fall. In 
the spring, fine, rotted manure is applied, 
just before plowing or spading preceding 
the planting of any crop. If the ground is 
fairly rich and well rotted manure is scarce, 
the manure may be scattered in the row 
only, and should be mixed into the soil be- 
fore the planting of seed. 

Loam is the best garden soil. Sand, with 
manure, gives good results. Clay is hardest 
to work, but is greatly improved by well 
rotted manure and vegetable matter — called 



humus. These should be well worked in 
with hoe and rake. Sifted coal ashes, en- 
tirely free from clinkers, will help loosen up 
clay when mixed into it, but will not re- 
move an acid condition nor increase fer- 
tility. 

Commercial Fertilizer. 

Many gardeners experience difficulty in 
obtaining supplies of well-rotted manure. 
In such cases commercial fertilizers should 
be used. Even where stable -.lanure has 
been secured and worked into the soil it 
is well^^ supplement with moderate quan- 
tities of 4liick-acting fertilizer 4n order to 
give plants an early start and hasten 
maturity. 

It is safest to rely upon the ready-mixed 
fertilizei's usually obtainable at seed and 
hardware stores. Several specially pre- 
pared mixtures in convenient packages are 
now on the market. For large areas, lOO 
to 200-pound bags may be obtained. A 
mixture containing 3 to 4 per cent nitrogen 
and 8 to 10 per cent phosphoric acid is 
about right for the average garden. Your 
dealer will inform you on this point. If 
the fertilizer .also contains potash, so much 
the better, but this year potash is scarce 
and high in price. 

Where no manure is used the fertilizer 
should be spread over the surface of the 
finely prepared seed-bed at the rate of s 
pounds for a plot lo feet square, just be- 
fore planting. The surface soil should 
then be thoroughly raked so as to mix 
the fertilizer evenly to a depth of 2 inches. 
Never place seed or transplanted plants 
in direct contact with fertilizer. Thorough 
mixing of the fertilizer with the soil is 
essential to prevent injury of seed or roots. 

Where manure has been worked into the 
soil, reduce the fertilizer application ap- 
proximately one-half. 

Tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes, spinach 
and some other crops requiring rather long 
growing seasons, are materially benefited 
by a second application of fertilizer when 
half grown. Side dressings of this kind 
should be scattered between the rows at 
the rate of four ounces (one-half pint) to 
10 feet of row, when rows are spaced 2 
feet apart ; and pro rata for rows spaced 
a greater or lesser distance. To insure 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



even distribution mix the fertilizer with 
fine, dry earth just before spreading. 

Compost. 

Compost is especially desirable when 
quick growth is wanted. Compost is thor- 
oughly rotted manure or organic material. 
It is prepared from six to twelve months 
before being used, by putting the manure 
and other material in piles having per- 
pendicular sides and flat tops. These piles 
are usually from 2 to 4 feet high and 6 to 8 
feet long. 

Besides the^ usual waste of garden rub- 
bish, there* is a large waste of leaves, 
weeds and the skins and other unused por- 
tions of fruits and vegetables. These 
should all be thrown on the compost pile to 
decay for use on the garden next spring. 




Fip 2— This shows the construction of an outdoor cold frame. A hot bed 
- ^-^ • that for the hot bed a pit and manure 



same way, except 
Sec pages 7 and 8. 



built in the 
are required 

Destroy all plants which are diseased. 
The compost pile should be built up in al- 
ternate layers of vegetable refuse a foot 
thick and earth an inch or more thick. The 
earth helps to rot the vegetable matter when 
mixed with it. The top of the pile should 
be left flat so the rain may enter and help 
in the process of decay. 

If the pile can be forked over once a 
month when not frozen and the contents 
well mixed together, they will decay quite 
rapidly and be in good usable condition in 
the spring. The compost may be either 
spread over the garden and plowed under 
or it may be scattered in the rows before 
the seeds are sown. This is, of course, not 
as rich as stable manure, but it is a good 
substitute. 



Compost is also used as a top dressing 
during the growing season for hastening 
growth. 

In the cities and towns tons of leaves 
are burned every fall. This is a loss which 
ought to be prevented. These leaves prop- 
erly composted wTth other vegetable waste 
and earth would be worth hundreds of dol- 
lars to the gardens next spring. 

In planning a permanent garden, a space 
should be reserved near the hot bed or seed 
bed, and in this space should be piled, as 
soon as pulled, all plants which are free 
from diseases and insects. This applies to 
all vegetables and especially to peas and 
beans, as these belong to a group of plants 
which take nitrogen from the air, during 
growth, and store it in their roots. When 
these plants are decayed they will return to 
to the soil not only much of the plant food 
taken from it during their growth but ad- 
ditional nitrogen 
as well. Nitrogen 
in the soil is nec- 
essary for satis- 
factory leaf 
growth. The ma- 
terial so compost-- 
ed should be al- 
lowed to decay 
throughout the 
winter, and when 
needed should be' 
used according to 
the instructions 
given for using compost. The sweepings 
of pigeon lofts or chicken coops make 
valuable fertilizer. 

Prepared sheep manure, where procura- 
ble at a reasonable price, is possibly the 
safest concentrated fertilizer. It should be 
used in small quantities rather than spread 
broadcast. Scatter it along the row before 
seed is sown or apply by mixing it with 
water in a p^il, stirring the mixture to the 
consistency of thin mush, and pouring it 
around the roots of the plants.. 

Green Manure. 

Green manure is useful a« a fertilizer. 
It consists of green plants turned under by 
plowing or spading. Rye is the most 
satisfactory for this purpose. If planted in 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



July or August the crop may be turned un- 
der in the fall if early spring planting is de- 
sired. If planted later, it is usually turned 
under in the spring. When not turned un- 
der until spring the growth will prevent the 
leaching of soluble plant food or the wash- 
ing away of rich soil. 

In sowing rye for this purpose, use at the 
rate of 1 pound of seed to a strip of ground 
50 feet long and 10 feet wide. If the ground 
is rough or hard it should be cultivated just 
before the seed is sown, and then cultivated 
again to cover the seed. Sow the seed be- 
tween the rows of crops not yet gathered. 
Rye is very hardy and will sprout even 
though there is frost nearly every night. 
At a cost of about 5 cents for a pound of 
seed a garden of 10 by 50 feet can thus be 
treated to an application of green manure. 
The green rye plants soon decay when 
turned under and answer the same purpose 
as a light dressing of manure. 

Green manure should not be relied upon 
to do the vrork of stable manure. 

Lime. 

Land which has long been unused or land 
in lawns, is apt to be sour. To remedy this 
condition apply evenly i pound of air- 
slaked lime or 2 pounds of ground lime- 
stone to every 30 
square feet. The 
lime should be appli- 
ed and raked in to a 
depth of 2 inches 
when the seed bed is 
being prepared in the 
spring. Instead of 
lime 2 pounds of 
unleached wood 
ashes may be used. 




Fig. 3 — Wheel hoe or hand cultivator. Thi.s can 
be had with various attachments, such as plow, 
cultivator teeth, shovels and rake. A simple form 
may be made at home. 



OUTDOOR HOTBEDS. 

For early planting a hotbed may be made, 
located in a sheltered spot with southern 
exposure, where it will receive a generous 
supply of sun. A width of 6 feet is desir- 
able and the length should be such as will 
enable the use of standard 3 by 6 foot hot- 
bed sash. -A simple, boxlike frame, 12 inches 
high in the rear and 8 inches high infront, 
will hold 'the sash and give a better angle 
for the rays of the sun. 

Dig \ pit Vy4 to 2 feet deep, the size of 
the sash frame to be used. Line the sides 
of this with boards or planks, brick or con- 
crete, and make a tile drain, or place stones 
on the bottom of the pit, to carry off sur- 
plus wafer. This pit is to be filled with fresh 
horse manure. The manure will require 
special treatment before being placed in 
the pit. It should be thrown into a pile and 
allowed to heat. When it has heated and is 
steaming fork it over into a new pile, 
throwing the outside material into the cen- 
ter. When the new pile has become well 
heated fork the material once more into a 
new pile. This will require from ten days 
to two weeks and is important in that it 
gets rid of excessive heat.- After this pro- 
cess fill the pit with the manure, packed 
down firmly and evenly, level with the sur- 
face of the surrounding earth. On top of 
this manure make a covering of good gar- 
den loam 3 or 4 inches deep. 

When the sash have been put in place the 
manure will generate heat, in addition to 
the heat that will be derived from the 
sun. After this heat has reached its high- 
est point and dropped back to between 80 
and 90 degrees F. the seeds should be 
planted. Use the best seeds obtainable. Un- 
til the seeds germinate the hotbed should 
be kept shaded to hold moisture. This can 
be done by spreading over the sash strips 
of old carpet, heavy cloth or newspapers. 
After germination strong light will be need- 
ed. The plants must be watered each morn- 
ing on clear days, and the sash left partially 
open for ventilation,' as it is necessary to 
dry the foliage to prevent mildew. 

Proper ventilation is essential to the pro- 
duction of strong, healthy plants. The sash 
should be raised during the warmest part 
of the day on the side opposite the 



8 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



direction from which the wind is blow- 
ing. By opening it in this way instead of 
facing the wind, the hotbed receives fresh 
air without receiving the direct wind. On 
cold days raise the sash slightly three or 
four times for a few minutes only. In se- 
vere weather cover the beds with mats, 
straw or manure to keep in as much heat as 
possible. About two weeks before trans- 
planting time the sash should be removed 
during the day to "harden" plants. While 
in the hot bed the plants should be thor- 
oughly watered but the water should not 
reach the manure underneath. Early morn- 
ing is the best time for watering, so that the 
plants will be dried before night. 

An outdoor hotbed of this character 
should be started in the early spring — 
February or March. 

THE COLD FRAME. 
A cold frame is useful for hardening 
plants which have been started in the hot- 
bed. It is built like a hotbed, but without 
the pit or manure. It is built on the 
surface of the ground. Good, rich soil 
should be used and the soil kept slightly 
moist. In mild climates the cold frame may 
be used instead of a hotbed for starting 
plants. It is also used in the fall and early 
winter for growing lettuce, radishes, car- 
rots, parsley, etc. 

TOOLS. 

Not many implements are required for 
home gardening. The essentials are a spade 
or a garden fork, a hoe, a rake with steel 
teeth, a trowel, a dibble or pointed stick 
and a line such as is used by masons, or 
a piece of common string or cord, to 
stretch between two stakes for marking ofT 
rows. In the case of hard 
packed earth a pick is useful j^ 
for digging. For watering, a 
rubber hose is needed where 
pipe connections are avail- 



i*/i4|^^^iy^,(^ 



able. Lacking this equipment a watering 
pot should be provided. A hand cultivator 
or wheel hoe is useful, especially in a large 
garden, and saves much time and labor in 
turning small furrows. With simple attach- 
ments it is used for stirring the soil and the 
removal of weeds. 

PREPARATION OF SOIL. 

After the frost goes out test the ground 
by squeezing a handful of it. If it crum- 
bles the soil is ready for spading. If it 
packs into a mud ball, the ground is still 
too wet and must not be worked. 

Spade deeply, 8 to 15 inches, unless this 
latter depth turns up poor soil and buries 
the richer soil of the top. Pulverize the dirt 
deeply with hoe, spade and rake, breaking- 
all clods on the surface. If a lawn 
roller is available it is useful for crushing 
hard clods. All vegetable growth on the 
surface, such as grass or weeds, should be 
turned under, to rot and enrich the soil. 
This is especially important with ground 
that has had a growth of turf. 

SELECTION OF CROPS. 

The home garden campaign for 1918 
should be planned with a view to the pro- 
duction of the largest possible amount of 
food with the smallest possible outlay of 
seed and fertilizer. Authorities agree that 
the seed shortage is the worst the country 
has ever seen. The supply of fertilizers 
and natural manures is also far below the 
normal. The demand for these materials 
is exceedingly great and wartime effi- 
ciency makes it vital that wartime con- 
servation be practiced in the use of 
them. To this end the war 
gardens of 1918 should be 
devoted as far as possible to 
those crops which are most 
useful for food and in which 
the chances of failure are 
least to be feared. 




Fig. 4— Tools and implements most commonly needed in a small garden. From left to right, between 
the balls Of cord, they are: Trowel, weeOcr, spaue, steel tootlied rake, garden fork, watering pot and 
dibble. 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



In the selection of vegetables for the 
home garden preference should be given to 
those having high food values. In the order 
of food value some of the best-known vege- 
tables are : Beans, peas, corn, potatoes, 
parsnips, onions, beets, carrots, squash, 
greens, turnips, cabbage, cauliflower, rad- 
ishes, tomatoes and celery. 

Cauliflower, muskmelons, watermelons, 
onions from seed, asparagus and cucum- 
bers are some of the plants that are most 
difficult to raise and are not recommended 
to the amateur gardener. 

Soils vary so much that serious atten- 
tion should be given to the crops suited 
to the individual garden. This is a local 
question. Consult your local war garden 
committee's experts as to the best crops 
for your particular soil. 

In many communities last year witnessed 
an over-production of some vegetables that 
had to be used during the growing season. 
Many gardeners had larger crops of these 
than they could possibly use. Much waste 
resulted. To prevent this loss in seed, fer- 
tilizer, garden space, labor and foodstuffs 
every gardener should give especial atten- 
tion to the selection of crops. Plant spar- 
ingly of those things which must be used 
as they mature and plant liberally of those 
things which may be saved for winter use 
by canning, drying or storing. 



PROCURE SEEDS EARLY. 

Seed shortage was a handicap to many 
gardeners last year. In 1918 the planting of 
war gardens will be vastly increased and 
the demand for seeds even greater than in 




Fig. 5 — Use an envelope for sowing seed. The 
picture sliows seed already sown in some of the 
rows in the seed bo.K. 

1917. It 'is important, therefore, that the 
home gardener should procure his supply of 
seeds early — well in advance of planting 
time. Be sure to patronize a reliable dealer, 
as quality is vital. 

Use Seed Sparingly. 

Home gardeners often plant seed thickly 
to make sure of a good stand. This is a 
wasteful method, excepting with such vege- 
tables as will produce young plants which 
may be used as greens. The better way is 
to plant according to the directions given in 
the planting table. 

The pronounced seed shortage this year 
makes it imperative that no seed be wasted. 



HOW MUCH SEED TO BUY. 
The following amounts of seed will plant in each case a garden row 100 feet long. 
Measure your rows and buy accordingly. Also compare your figures with planting table 
on page 23. 



String beans.. 
Lima beans.._ 

Cabbage - 

Carrot 

Cauliflower 

Celery 

All squash 

Beets 

Sweet corn 

Lettuce 

Muskmeloti 

Cucumber 



... J4 to 1 pint Eggplant 

J/t to 1 pint Kale, or Swiss chard 

^4 ounce Parsley .._ _ 

1 ounce Parsnip __ 

1 packet Vegetable oyster (salsify).. 

% ounce Onion sets (bulbs) 

'^ ounce Onion seed 

2 ounces Peas 

!/{. pint Radish 

. '/; ounce Spinach 

-Yz ounce Tomatoes 

_yi ounce Turnip 



1-3 ounce 

J4 ounce 

54 ounce 

Yi ounce 

Yi ounce 

1 quart 

1 ounce 

1 to 2 pint! 

1 ounce 

._ 1 oi:nce 

^/i ounce 

y; ounce 



1 or 2 pecks of early potatoes and Vi to 1 bushel of late potatoes are enough to plant to 
supply four persons. 



Testing Seeas. 
A simple test will give useful advance 
information of the germinating value of 
seeds. This test is useful as enabling the 
gardener to determine whether or not 
seeds have been properly cured and are 



otherwise in good condition. Seeds which 
are too old or have been kept under un- 
favorable conditions are unsatisfactory. 

To test, plant 100 seeds of each variety 
in an indoor seed box or in a hot bed. 
When these have germinated count the 



lO 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



seedlings which appear. The number of 
seedlings from lOO seeds will show the per- 
centage of germination. 

The planted seeds must be kept warm 
and moist during the test. 

The seedlings should be kept for trans- 
planting as this will prevent waste. 





Fig. 6 — A paper band folded into the form of a 
berry box, without bottom, is a good holder for 
indoor seed planting. The picture shows how 
tlusc are placed side by side in a flat box. 

The standard adopted by the United 
States Department of Agriculture for seed 
gennination is as follows : 

Should produce 6o to 8o per cent : 

Celery, Parsley, Salsify, Eggplant, Parsnip. 

Should produce 8o to 85 per cent: 

Asparagus, Okra, Spinach, Carrot, Onion, Cauli- 
flower, Pepper. 

Should produce 85 to 90 per cent : 

Corn (sweet), Lettuce, Squash, Cress, Melon, 
Tomato, Cucumber, Pumpkin. 

Should produce 90 to 95 per cent : 

Bean, Mustard, Turnip, Cabbage, Pea, Radish. 

INDOOR PLANTING. 

Earlier crops can be secured by planting 
certain seeds indoors and setting the young 
plants out in the open garden after the 
weather becomes warm. -This may be done 




Fig. 8— Suggestion for a seed box for starting 
plants indoors. 

with tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, cauliflower, 
peppers, and eggplant. 

Any wooden box, shallow and wide, 
will make an indoor garden. Put 1 inch 
of gravel or cinders in the bottom for 
drainage, and fill to the top with good soil. 
Rows of plants may be 2 inches apart. 

Plant 8 or 10 seeds to the inch, keep the 



soil damp, and set the box in a window. 
When the plants are an inch high trans- 
plant them to other seed boxes, spacing ' 
plants 2 inches apart. This insures sturdy 
plants with good root systems. 

Transplanting. 

Before transplanting the plants to the 
garden set the box outdoors, in mild 
weather, to harden the plants. Set out each 
plant with a ball of the box dirt sticking to 
the roots. Thorough watering several hours 
before transplanting causes the earth to 
stick as required. 

If the root system is broken in the re- 
moval trim away some of the larger leaves 
of the plants. In moist ground open a hole 




Fig. 7 — How a tomato plant is transplanted from 
pot to garden. 

with trowel or dibble. Make the hole 
larger than is needed to hold the roots and 
a little deeper than the roots grew. Place 
roots in hole, and, with the hands, pack the 
soil firmly around the plant. In dry soil 
pour a pint of water into each hole before 
inserting plant. Rake some dry earth 
about the surface surrounding each plant to 
hold the moisture. 

Transplanted plants cannot stand strong 
sunshine at first and cloudy days or late 
afternoon are preferable for transplanting. 
In bright weather place newspapers over 
them for a day or two, making tents of the 
papers, in the shape of an inverted V. 

A homemade paper pot, a round, bot- 
tomless paper band or a berry box, filled 
with soil may be used to produce plants 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR ii 



for a hiil of beans, cucumbers, sweet corn, 
melons or other plants which are started 
indoors. In transplanting these plants 
merely remove the bottom, if there is one, 
and sink frame and plants in the garden 
soil. This prevents disturbing the root 
systems, which is important. 

WHEN TO PLANT. 

When heavy frosts are over, plant early 
peas, onion sets and seed, early potatoes, 
kale, lettuce and spinach. All of these will 



other too much some of them may be re- 
moved and transplanted to another part of 
the garden. The seed bed plan is useful for 
such crops as cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, 
late cabbage and tKe like. 

FALL PLANTING. 

It is well to plant, a fall garden of some 
crops, for in spite of the risk of injury by 
early frost the chances are in favor of satis- 
factory results. There can be no absolute 
rule as to the time of planting. The prob- 



^M&i>- 




Fig. 9 — Straight rows add to the beauty of the garden and are easier to cultivate. The simplest way 
to lay them off is to stretch a line between two stakes and mark row with a hoe, hoc handle or stick. 



stand light freezing e.xcept potato plants, 
which must be covered with dirt when 
frost threatens. 

When frosts are about over plant rad- 
ishes, parsnips, carrots, beets, late peas 
and early sweet corn, and set out cab- 
bage and cauliflower plants. (.\n oil and 
useful rule is to "plant corn when the oak 
leaves are the size of a squirrel's ear"). 

When all frosts are over and apple trees 
are in bud, plant string beans and late 
sweet corn, and set out a few early tomato 
plants from the indoor boxes. 

When apple trees blossom plant cu- 
cumbers, melons, squashes, lima beans and 
set out the rest of the indoor jilants. 

SEED BEDS. 

Plants for second crops may be raised 
in a seed bed occupying small space. These 
plants rnay be grown while the space 
allotted to them in the garden plan is still 
in use for earlier crops. TJie rows of seed 
are not spaced so closely as in boxes used 
inside the house. If the plants crowd each 



able tim"e of the first frost in each locality 
must be taken as a general guide. For 
planting in August, and possibly even in 
early September, the following vegetables 
may be grown : 

When first frost maj- be expected between 
September 15 and September 23 : 

Lettuce, Spinach, Turnips. Parsley, Multi- 
plier Onions and Turnips. (Kale and Radishes 
may be risked^. 

When first frost may be expected between 
September 20 and October 5 : 

Kale, Lettuce, Parsley, Multiplier Onions, 
Radishes, Spinach and Turnips. Beets and 
Chard for gretns. 

When first frost may be expected between 
October 5 and October 15 : 

Beets for canning, Carrots, Kale, Multiplier 
Onions, Spinach, Chard, Endive, Lettuce, 
Radishes and Turnips. 

When first frost may be expected between 
October 15 and October 25 : 

Any of the vegetables mentioned in the pre- 
ceding lists. (String beans may be risked). 

LAYING OFF ROWS. 

Straight rows add to the garden's beauty 
and make cultivation easier. To make the 
rows straight stretch a stout string i)«- 



J-^ 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



tween stakes and follow it with the point 
of a hoe, with a wheel hoe, or with the end 
of the handle of a rake or hoe, to open up 
the row. The plan is suggested in Fig. 9. 




t*ig. lu — tScaiis piantcu pruperiy. 

SUCCESSION OF CROPS. 

Nature generously provides for more than 
one crop on the same soil. Vegetables 
which reach maturity early in the season 
should be followed by later crops of the 
same vegetable or by rotation of other 
kinds. Onions to be used green may be 
grown in rows which are to be occupied 
by late tomato plants, as a few of the 
onions may be removed to plant the to- 
matoes. Radishes mature early and as they 
are harvested the space may be used for 
cabbage, lettuce, cauliflower, Brussels 
sprouts and other plants. Many combina- 
tions of this kind may be made. 

FOR CONTINUOUS CROPS. 

With some of the important vegetables a 
series of plantings is desirable. Of string 
beans, lettuce, radishes, spinach, sweet 
corn, peas, beets and carrots there should 
be several successive plantings, two or 
three weeks apart, to provide a fresh and 
continuous supply all season. 



Fig. 11 — Lima beans, planted properly. Note posi- 
tion of eyes. 

DEPTH OF PLANTING. 

Do not plant too deeply. The old rule is 
to plant to a depth of 5 times the size of the 
seed. This, however, is not an absolute 




rule and is not safe in all cases. Consult 
planting table on page 23 for depth. 

HOEING. 

When the green rows appear it is time to 
start hoeing or cultivating. Never hoe or 
cultivate deeply — an inch or two is deep 
enough — but stir the ground frequently, and 
always after rain or watering, as soon as it 
is dry enough. The hoeing must not be 
done after rain or watering when the 
ground is still so wet as to cause the muddy 
earth to pack like cement, as this causes 
the earth to cake and dry out rapidly. 

Frequent hoeing causes the formation of 
a dust layer which prevents the soil under- 
neath from drying out. The garden should 
always be kept 
free from 
weeds, as these, 
if permitted to 
grow, consume 
plant food and 
moisture need- 
ed by the 
plants. 

WATERING. 

A plentiful 
supply of 
moisture is es- 
sential. If there 
is not sufficient 
rainfall the 
moisture must 
be provided by 
watering the 
garden. In do- 
ing this it is 
better to soak 
the ground once 

a week than to water every day. 
afternoon is the best time. 

To moisten the surface is not enough. 
There must be a thorough wetting. If pipe 
connections are available a garden hose is 
the best means of watering. One of the 
most satisfactory methods is to open small 
furrows between rows and allow water to 
run into these trenches, raking the earth 
back into place several hours later, after 
the water has thoroughly soaked in. The 
sprinkling pot will serve if hose is not 
available, but it is more laborious. 




^iNcnc» 



Fig 12 — A small potato 
planted whole. The depth of 
planting here shown is ap- 
proximately iyi inches to the 
center of the potato. This is 
the depth for late potatoes. 
Early potatoes are planted 2 
inches nearer surface. 



Late 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 
DIRECTIONS FOR VEGETABLE GROWING. 



13 



POTATOES. 

As one of the staple needs of the household Potatoes are entitled to special attention 
in Home Gardening and Community Gardening. In selecting for seed it is desirable to 
choose medium to large, smooth, shallow-eyed potatoes. The best seed will produce the 
best crop. Potatoes grow best in sandy loam or in a gravel loam. Heavy, sticky clay or 
loose sand is not desirable soil. Potatoes should not be grown in the same place in the 
garden in which they were grown the previous year. A rotation of three or four years is 
desirable. 

Preparation of the soil should be done with care. The ground should be worked 
witli plow, spade and hoe, to a depth of 8 or 10 inches, and should be thoroughly broken 
up or pulverized, then thoroughly worked with a steel-toothed rake. This preparation 
is of great importance and should not be slighted. 

Treat Seed for Scab. are used cut them into pieces v/eighing from 

One of the most common diseases affect- 1 to 2 bunces, each piece having two eyes. 



ing seed potatoes is scab. This attacks the 
skin of the potato, causing it 
to thicken, and giving it a 
scabby appearance. It is 
carried through the winter, 
in soil, in manure and on 
the potatoes themselves. To 
control this affection it is 
important that potatoes 
should be rotated with other 
crops as to location, and the 
same soil not used for pota- 
toes except at intervals of 
three or four years. A sim- 
ple remedy, easily applied, 
is to soak the seed potatoes 
before planting, in a solu- 
tion of formalin and water. 
This solution is made of 1 
ounce of Formalin (40 per 
cent formaldehyde), mixed 
in 2 gallons of water. In 
this mixture soak the uncut 
potatoe for two hours, and 
spread them out to dry. The 
solution can be used on as 
many lots of potatoes as de- 
sired. 

Seed potatoes should be 
spread out in a room in 
which they will be exposed 
to strong light for two 
weeks before cutting, to 
start sprouts and detect 
poor seed. If large potatoes 




Fig. .13— Lima bean vine on pole. 



If potatoes are scarce and expensive the 
pieces .maj' be cut to a single 
eye. Do not cut the seed 
until it is to be planted. 

Planting. 

For planting, prepare 
' trenches or furrows from 3 
to 5 inches deep and from 
24 to 36 inches apart. Plant 
seed pieces 3 inches deep for 
early potatoes and 5 inches 
for late varieties. The seed 
pieces should be 14 to 18 
inches apart in rows, the 
smaller the pieces the closer 
the planting. Fill the trench 
with dirt, firming it in order 
that the moisture may be 
brought in contact with the 
seed pieces to assist in the 
process of germination. 

Usually potatoes should 
not be planted as late as the 
first week in July verjj far 
inorth of the Mason and 
Dixon line except in sec- 
tions where it is known that 
they will mature before 
freezing weather arrives. 

Cultivation. 

As soon as the potato 
plants come up begin culti- 
vating them. The cultiva- 



14 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 




tion should begin before they come up if a 
crust forms. This crust should be broken 
with a rake or weeder. Cultivate half a 
dozen times during the season, to keep the 
surface in good condition. When the plants 
are young work the soil up around them 
to support the plants. 

Potatoes are subject to diseases and in- 
sects which are scheduled on page 22. Take 
precautions to keep these from getting a 

I— 



-I 



-2 INCHES 

Fig. 14 — Corn, planted properly, at a depth of 2 
inches. 

start. Follow instructions as to spraying 

and keep at it during the season. It is 

better to spray before trouble appears than 

to take cliances. 

Except for immediate use potatoes should 
not be dug while the skin is so tender that 
it can be rubbed off. 

SWEET POTATOES. 

Sweet potatoes are grown mostly in the 
Southern States or where there is warm, 
sandy soil, and are not especially recom- 
mended for the home garden. If space 
permits a few plants may be grown. 

If you wish to grow your own plants 
start a hotbed about six weeks before 
apple-blossom time. Place 5 or 6 inches 
of sand over the manure in the hotbed and 
lay down small, healthy sweet potatoes, 
close together but not touching. Cover 
them with one or two inches of sand; 
water occasionally to keep slightly moist. 
Spr'outs will soon begin to grow and im- 
mediately send out roots into tlie sand. 
When these sprouts are four or more in- 
ches long they may be pulled from the 
potatoes and are '•ooted and ready to be 
planted. They need not be pulled, how- 
ever, until time to plant them in the gar- 
den, when all danger of. frost is past. They 
should be set 14 inches apart in rows 36 
to 60 inches apart. If.oiHJy a few plants 



are wanted they should be purchased from 
a seedsman, as the trouble involved in 
growing them in small quantities is too 
great to make it worth while. 

On land which is not thoroughly drained 
the plants should be set on ridges and these 
should be made broad, as narrow ridges 
will dry out too rapidly. The ridges 
should be maintained during the entire 
growing season. 

Sweet potatoes should be dug when the 
soil is dry and the weather bright, before 
there is danger of har-d frosts. A spading 
fork may be used in digging them. Guard 
against bruising or injuring them in dig- 
ging and handling. Let the roots lie out 
to dry for two or three hours after digging. 



Asparagus. 



Use strong plants two years old, which 
may be purchased from seedsmen. Set 
them 18 inches apart, in rows 3 feet apart. 
The rows should be 8 to 10 inches deep, 
with width of 6 to 8 inches at bottom. 
After spreading out roots cover crowns 
with 2 inches of soil. With the growth of 
the shoots gradually fill in with earth 
until level with surface. Careful cultiva- 
tion is required during season. 

The cultivation of Asparagus is not rec- 
ommended to home gardeners, as the first 
year's results are too small to make it worth 
while. 




Fig. 15— Corn, planted properly in hill, at a depth 
of 2 inches and with corner kernels 3 inches apart. 

Beans. 

String and lima beans are grown alike. 
There are two sorts of each — low bush 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



15 



vines and bean vines that climb poles. 
Pole beans are best for small gardens. 

Plant beans and brush Limas i inch 
deep, 4 to 6 inches apart in rows. 

Plant pole beans and pole Limas in hills 
I inch deep, 4 seeds to hill, hills 3 feet 
apart. Thin to 2 plants to the hill. Be- 
fore planting fix firmly in each hill a pole 
5 to 6 feet long. If desired have two rows 
of hills and slant the poles so that each set 
of 4 many be tied together at the top like 
an Indian tepee. 

Help the vines to start twining around 
the poles from right to left. 

Note: Plant lima beans with the "eyes" 
of the seeds downward. 

Beets. 

Sow seed rather thickly in row, but thin 
the young plants by pulling until the sur- 
vivors are 4 inches apart. The pulled plants 
make fine greens for cooking or <:anningv 

Brussels Sprouts. 
Grown like cabbage. 

Cabbage. 

Set plants from indoor seed boxes or 
pots 15 inches apart in rows, the rows be- 
ing 30 inches apart. Between these rows 
early lettuce, radishes, and other little 
crops may be planted. Early cabbage should 
be gathered as soon as it has formed solid 
heads. Late cabbage may be stored in 
trenches and covered with straw and earth. 

Carrots. 

.Sow seed Y^ inch deep, using ^ ounce 
to 25 feet of row. Thin to 2 or 3 inches 
apart when roots crowd each other. 

r-0 




-2 



-3 



Fig. 16 — Peas, planted properly, at 
4 inches. 



L-4INCHES 

a deptli of 



should be tied together over the heads to 
keep out light and bleach the heads. 

Celery. 

Sow seed in seed boxes and set plants in 
garden in June or July, 6 inches apart, 
trenches 6 inches deep and 3 feet apart. 
As the plants grow, cultivate the ground 
into the trenches. When plants are large 
heap earth around stalks to whiten them. 



.'i^'-vifer^; 




Cauliflower. 

Grown the same as cabbages except when 
the heads form, the loose outer leaves 



Fig. 17— A tomato plant should be tied with a 
strip of cloth, at a height of ten inches from the 
ground, again at about 18 inches and again at 
about 26 inches. The plant .here pictured is a 
good one from which to save seed. 

Celeriac. 

This is a large rooted form of celery. It 
is grown like celery, except that the plants 
do not need blanching. The large root is 
cooked for use. The plants should be pro- 
tected in freezing weather by straw or 
mulch (half rotted manure and straw), and 
dug as used. 

Corn, Sweet. 

Plant 5 or 6 seed i inch deep in hills " 
feet apart. When plants are 4 inches high 
pull out all but 2 or 3 plants in each hill. 
Make new plantings every 2 weeks until 
July oi- August so as to have corn for use 
during the entire season. 

Cucumbers. 

Plant 8 to 10 seed i inch deep in hills 4 
feet apart. Later thin to 2 plants per hill. 
Do not plant until soil is warm and frosts 
are over. Hoe or cultivate only until plants 
start to vine, then pull weeds by hand. 



i6 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



Eggplant. 

Little plants from seed boxes are set 2 
feet apart in rows 3 feet apart. 

Endive. 

In midsummer sow seed Yi inch deep 
and later thin plants to 8 inches apart. To 
blanch hearts raise leaves and tie together 
over heart. 

Kale. 

Sow seeds ^ inch deep in rows 18 to 24 
inches apart. Thin the plants until they 
are from 6 to 8 inches apart in the rows. 

Kohl-rabi. 

Sow seed Yi inch deep and later thin 
plants to 4 or 6 inches apart. 

Lettuce. 

Sow seed Yi inch deep in rows i foot 
apart, and later thin out until plants are 5 
to 6 inches apart. There should be suc- 
cessive plantings, but lettuce is not grown 
in extremely hot weather. Sow seed the 
last of August and in September to be 
transplanted to the cold frame in October. 

Mint. 

Roots may be procured from a seedsman 
or neighbor Plant one or two clumps of 
these roots in a corner of garden in the 

spring. 

Muskmelon. 

Grown like cucumbers except hills must 
be 6 feet apart. 

Muskmelons are difficult to raise and are 
not recommended to gardeners who are not 
experienced in their culture. 

Onions. 

Onions will grow from seed or from 
bulbs, called sets. It is better to use sets 
in home gardens. For early green onions 
plant sets 3 inches apart in rows i foot or 
more apart. To grow from seed, plant the 
seed rather thickly 3^ of an inch deep in 
rows and thin them later until plants are 2 
to 3 inches apart. If sets for planting next 
spring are desired, do not thin out any 
plants, but let them crowd so they will re- 
main small. Seed may be planted in seed 
box or seed bed and when transplanted 
placed 3 inches apart. 

Parsley. 

Sow seed thinly Y^ inch deep, later thin- 
ning plants when they crowd each other. 

Parsnips. . 

Sow seeds thinly V^ of an inch deep in 
rows 18 to 24 inches apart and later thin 
plants to 3 inches apart. 



Peas. 

Peas should be planted in trenches 4 in- 
ches deep, the seed being covered with 3 to 
4 inches of soil. From i to 2 pints of seed 
will plant 100 feet of row. As the plants 
grow, gradually fill in the trench around 
them. Let the vines grow up on brush 
or poultry wire. The rows of peas should 
be 3 to 4 feet apart, but if the space is small 
it is desirable to plant double rows i foot 
apart, placing the brush between these 
rows. Make three or four plantings in 2- 
week intervals to give a continuous crop. 

Peppers. 

Set young plants from seed box 18 inches 
apart in row. 

Potatoes. 

For special instructions on Irish and 
Sweet Potatoes see pages 13 and 14. 

Pumpkin. 

Plant in hills 8 to 10 feet apart, using 8 
to 10 seed to a hill. Plant seed i inch 
deep. Later thin to 2 or 3 plants to a hill. 

Radishes. 

Planted and grown the same as carrots. 

Rhubarb. 

Procure roots from a neighbor or dealer, 
as seed planting is not advised. Set them 
3 to 4 feet apart, in rows or next to fence. 
Use manure freely. 

Salsify or Oyster Plant. 

Also called vegetable oyster. Grown like 
carrots. Plants must be thinned to 3 inches 
apart. 

Spinach. 

Sow seed thickly i inch deep in rows 
12 to 18 inches apart, for both early spring 
and fall crops. 

Squash. 

Grown the same as cucumbers or musk- 
melon, except that the hills 'bf Hubbard 
squash should be 7 to 9 feet apart. 

Swiss Chard. 

Sow seed Y2 inch deep. Thin out when 
necessary. 

Tomato. 

Set out young plants from seed boxes 30 
to 36 inches apart and support them later 
with stakes driven into the ground. Rows 
should be 36 to 48 inches apart. 

Turnip. 

For early spring, plant '4 ounce of seed 
to 50 feet of row, sowing them Y2 inch 
deep, in rows i foot or more apart. For 
fall crop Ya ounce of seed to 50 feet of 
row, Ya inch deep. 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 17 



Vegetable Marrow. 

- Plant 6 or 8 seed to a hill, one inch deep, 
in hills 8 to 9 feet apart. Thin to 2 plants 
to hill. Give the same care as for pump- 
kins. The young and tender vegetable 
marrow may be baked whole- like sweet 
potatoes or may be sliced and fried like 
egg-plant, or boiled like summer squash. 



Watermelon. 

Plant I inch deep, 8 or 10 seed to each 
hill, the hills 10 feet apart. Later thin to 
2 plants to each hill. 

Watermelons are difficult to raise and are 
not recommended to gardeners who are not 
experienced in their culture. 



DISEASE AND INSECT PREVENTION. 

tities you can procure materials at lower 
prices than if buying alone. 

For home mixing the poisons and chemi- 
cals r^uired for sprays and other remedies 
and preventives can be bought at a drug 
or seed store. The mixtures ready prepared 
can be bought at a seed store. 



Every garden is subject to attack from 
insects and diseases. Your garden may not 
be attacked, but it is wise to take advance 
precautions. Spraying at occasional in- 
tervals from the time the plants have made 
their start until they are harvested is worth 
while. A hand sprayer should be used to 
distribute the necessary solutions on the 
plants. Such sprayers may be bought in 
various types. Some of them may be bought 
fo'- a dollar or less and others range up to 
the neighborhood of $10 for the small, com- 
pressed air type. The simplest and cheap- 
est type is the small atomizer sprayer with 
hand pump and with glass receptacle for 
holding mixture. (Figure 18). Another 
type, costing a little more, is the bucket 
pump. (Figure 18). If you have no spray 
pump a good substitute is the whisk broom, 
for spattering the spray on plants. The 
ordinary sprinkling pot may be used to ap- 
ply the mixture, but this is wasteful. 
Buy Spraying Materials Early. 
Early purchase of spraying materials is 
important. The supply will be limited and 
the demand large. Make a list of the ma- 
terials you will need, vvith amounts, and 
place your order immediately. If you de- 
lay until the spraying season arrives you 
are likely to fail to procure your 
supply. By joining with friends 
or neighbors and buying in quan- 



Diseases. 
The ordinary blights are usually over- 
come by spraying with Bordeaux mixture, 
made as indicated in the next paragraph. 
There are some diseases, however, which 
cannot be overcome, and when trouble ap- 
pears that does not yield to treatment the 
affected plants should be taken up and 
burned to prevent the spread of infection. 

BoRDE.'VUx Mixture. 

Copper Sulphate, Blue Stone or Blue 

\"i;riol - - - 3 ounces. 

Lump Lime or Hydrated Lime 3 ounces 

Water 2^ gallon* 

To make Bordeaux Mixture procure the 
ingredients at a drug or 
seed store. If lump lime is 






hand sprayer, which is one of tue most 



Pig. l^Some of the best types of sprayer At the .ft is a hand spraye^ wn.ci, s one ox v.,c ...^=. 
satisfactory for the small garden. The glass rccepta le is better t"^" X^^ct, -ihnut $5 00 At the 
bought for from 50 cents to $2.00. In the center ._ o. bucket jprayer which costs about ^M^- At me 
right is a compressed air sprayer, which is highly ttficient and costs fr"'" ^-C? V" to eac^ "*" 
may be used by several families, or by commun'ty gardeners, reducing tne cooi 



IJ 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



used it must be fresh. Instead of lump 
lime some authorities prefer fresh hy- 
drated lime as being just as good and at the 
same time mucli simpler to use, needing 
only to be stirred into the water. Hydrated 
lime is lime to which enough water to dry- 
slake it has been added by the manufac- 




make a total of 1% gallons. In another 
vessel slake the lime and dilute it with 
enough water to make ll4 gallons. If hy- 
drated lime is used simply mix it with 
water. Then pour these two solutions to- 
gether, pouring the solution of copper sul- 
phate slowly into the mixture of lime and 
water, stirring vigorous- 
ly while this process is 
under way. The stirring 
issues proper mixing of 
the two. 

Bordeaux mixture may 
be purchased in concen- 
trated form from seeds- 
men, but the home made 
mixture is better and 
cheaper. Do not make 
more at one time than 
will be needed within a 
short time. The mixture 
is better and more effec- 
tive if made fresh for 
each spraying. 



Fig. 19 — Potato blights and their effect. At the left are shown leaves 
afflicted with early blight, indicated by brown spots with concentric 
rings. At the right is shown late blight, with dark brown spots looking 
watersoaked. 

turer. It is a powder and does not require 
slaking. 

For making or holding Bordeaux mix- 
ture use containers of wood or earthenware. 
In one container dissolve the copper sul- 
phate in about one-half gallon of hot water 
and then dilute with enough cold water to 



Sulphur. 

For the control of 
Mildew, pulverized 
sulphur or flowers of sulphur, procured at 
a drug or seed store, is dusted full strength 
on the diseased plants. A tin can with 
small holes punched in the bottom makes a 
good sifter for this purpose, or a cheap flour 
sifter may be used. The holes in a flour 
sifter are the proper size for this purpose. 



For the destruction of insects which suck 
the sap of plants, such as the true bugs and 
the plant lice or aphids, it is necessary to 
use a mixture which kills by contact or 
substances which smother. Aphids or plant 
lice usually collect on the underside of 
leaves, causing them to crumple. This 
crumpling causes the edges of the leaves to 
turn down, protecting the aphids. Badly 
crumpled leaves should be picked and 
burned. In spraying be sure to apply the 
spray to the undersides ot the leaves. Oth- 
erwise the edges will serve as protection 
and prevent the spray from reaching the 
fentire plant effectively. 



THE SUCKING INSECTS. 

Nicotine Sulphate Solution. 



To destroy the sucking insects use Nico- 
tine Sulphate Solution, made as follows : 



Nicotine sulphate 

Laundry or other soap_ 
Water 



-'/i ounce. 
-Vi ounce. 
Ji gallon* 



Dissolve the soap and then add this and 
the nicotine sulphate to the water. 

Bordeaux and Nicotine Sulphate 
Combination. 

A combination spray for plant diseases 
and sucking insects is made thus : 

Bordeaux mixture _ 2 gallons 

Nicotine sulphate ! yi ounce 

Laundry or other soap Vi ounce 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



19 



THE EATING INSECTS. 

The eating insects, or those which eat 
iruit or foliage, may usually be killed by 
using a spray of a poisonous solution or by 
dusting poison powders on the plants at- 
tacked. Arsenate of lead, procured at a 
drug or seed store, is a favorite poison for 
this purpose, and may be used in spray or 
powder, but it must be handled with care 
as it is poisonous to human beings. It 
should never be applied to vegetables that 
are soon to be used, nor on cabbage or cau- 
liflower after the heads have begun to form. 
As an added precaution wash carefully all 
vegetables before using, whether they have 
been sprayed or not. 

Arsenate of Lead Solution. 

Arsenate of lead spraying solution is 
made by mixing 1 ounce of arsenate of lead 
powder with 6 quarts of water. If the ar- 
senate of lead is used in paste form instead 
of powder mix 2 ounces with 6 quarts of 
water. The powder is more easily weighed 
and handled. Keep the mixture well stirred 
while spraying, to insure even distribution. 

To apply arsenate of lead in dry form, 
mix 1 ounce of the powder with 3 pounds of 
air-slaked lime, dry road dust, or ashes 
finely sifted. Use a sifter for dusting this 
onto the plants, while the plants are wet 
with dew. 
Bordeaux-Arsenate of Lead Combination 

Spraying with a combination of Bor- 
deaux mixture and arsenate of lead every 
two weeks is a wise safeguard against both 
disease and eating insects. To make this 
combination spray use Bordeaux mixture 
instead of water when preparing the arsen- 
ate-of lead. By using a combination spray 
half the labor of spraying is saved. 

In spraying cabbage and cauliflower with 
Bordeaux and arsenate of lead before 
the heads form a little soap mixed with 
the arsenate of lead will make it stick bet- 
ter. Shave the soap, add a small quantity of 
water and boil until the soap is dissolved 
or put it in cold water and stir occasional- 
ly until dissolved. Cool and stir into the 
arsenate of lead solution. 

Paris green has long been used for pro- 
tection, but arsenate of lead is now used 
much more extensively and is considered 
better. 



Pyrethrum. 

The best spray for cabbage, cauliflower 
and similar vegetables, after the heads have 
begun to form, is Pyrethrum, which can be 
bought at a drug or seed store and which is 
not poisonous' to human beings. It may be 
used as a spray in the proportion of !• ounce 
of Pyrethrum to 2 gallons of water. 

It will mix best if first made into a 
paste with warm water. It may also be 
used in, its full strength as a powder, with 
bellows or sifter. 

Poisoned B.-mt. 

Poisoned bait is useful against cutworms 
and slugs. Small portions of the bait should 
be placed around plants subject to attack 
by them. The pests feed at night and hide 
under chips or other objects during the day. 




Fig. 20 — Bean anthracnose is indicated by daric, 
sunken, scab-like spots on pods. There are also 
spots on leaves. 

Bait should be placed beneath these. 
Poisoned bait may be made at home thus : 



1 pound 

Yi ounce 

1 or 2 ounces 

One lemon or orange, chopped fine. 

Water to make a thick mash of the mixture. 



Wheat bran 

White arsenic, powdered. 
Cheap sirup- 



The bran and the white arsenic should be 
mixed. Dilute the sirup with a littk water 



20 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING 



ana pour this over the bran and white 
arsenic; add the lemon or orange and stir 
well. Add enough water to make a thick 
mash. 

Removing Insects By Hand. 

The larger eating insects may be removed 

by hand or knocked off into a pan of water 

on the surface of which a small quantity of 

kerosene is floating. Insects collected by 



Some Other Forms of Protection. 

One form of protection against cut 
worms is a collar 2 inches wide made of 
stifif paper,, placed around the stem of the 
plant and with its lower edge inserted in 
the ground, to prevent the pests from 
reaching both stem and root. 

Small frames covered with mosquito 
netting or cheesecloth set over young plants 
will protect them. 



hand should be destroyed immediately. 

GUARD AGAINST DISEASES AND INSECTS 



An ounce of prevention is worth a pound 
of cure in the matter of controlling diseases 
and insects. Remnants of the year's crops 
should not be allowed to remain in the gar- 
den, as they will harbor and feed insects. 
All diseased plants which remain at the end 
of the season should be burned, as should 
all rubbish which is of such character that 
it will not decay and is therefore not use- 
ful in making compost. This includes trash, 




Fig. 21 — Emphasizing the importance of spraying. 
On the left is a potato plant which was not 
sprayed. The ravages of the potato bug are plainly 
shown. On the right is a plant which was 
properly sprayed as a preventive measure. 



sticks and the like. It may seem like a 
waste of vegetable matter to burn the dead 
tomato vines, bean vines and other plant 
tops which have been diseased, but this 
should be done because to save or compost 
these for fertilizer would simply be matur- 
ing and saving millions of disease spores 
which would be on hand ready to attack 
the crops next year. More than this, a clean 
garden appeals to the eye and to the pride 
of the owner as a winter landscape. 

Corn stalks, cabbage leaves and stumps, 
beet tops if not canned, and other healthy 
plants, should be saved for mulching or be 
added to the compost heap. 

The remnants of vegetable matter, which 
are not infected with disease or insects, 
should be made into compost heaps for the 
coming year and covered with stable ma- 
nure and dirt to hasten decay, as decayed 
vegetable matter enriches the soil. (Direc- 
tions for making a compost heap are given 
on page 6). Plowing or deep spading in 
the fall is important, as it breaks up the 
winter homes of underground insect pests. 



PREVENTIVES AND REMEDIES. 
NOTE: It is important that immediate attention be given insects and diseases asi 
BOon as they appear. Delay in spraying or removal may prove fatal. 

ASPARAGUS. 

Beetles— (Eat young stems and leaves). 

Remedy: On young plants spray with ar- 
senate of lead when pests appear, repeating 10 
days later and again 10 days later if neces- 
sary. Do not use arsenate of lead on new stems 
used for food during cutting season. On old 
plants, spray after cutting season. 

BEETS. 



Rust — (Rusty appearance of leaves and stems) — 
Procure rust resistant variety, such as Reading 
Giant or Palmetto. 



Leaf spot— (Reddish and purple spots, turning 
ashy gray)— Usually not affecting garden 
beets. 

Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture when 
plants are 3 to 4 inches high, repeating 2 and 
4 weeks later. 
Web worm — (Eats the leaves). 

Remedy: Spray with arsenate of lead when 
worms appear; repeat when necessary. 



Spinach aphis— (Sucks sap from leaves)— 

Remedy: Spray with nicotine sulphate when 
pests appear and repeat when necessary. 
In order to strike the aphids the spray must 
be directed against the undersides of the 
leaves. 

Beet-root aphis— (Sucks sap from roots). 

Remedy: Pour a small amount of Nicotine 
sulphate spray around roots and repeat if nec- 
essary. 



PLANT FIVE MILLION FOOD GARDENS THIS YEAR 



21 



BUSH BEANS. 



Anthracnose — (Dark, sunken spots, scab-like, on 

pods; spots on leaves) — Pick. and burn dis- 
. eased pods. In saving seed discard those 
' from diseased plants, as seed .carry the in- 
fection. 
Leaf beetles — (Very small, dark or pale striped; 
eat leaifes). 

Remedy: Spray with arsenate of lead when 
pests appear, repeat in 10 days and later if 
necessary. Bordeaux mixture repels but does 
not kill. 



Aphids or plant lice — (Suck sap from plant ana 

make leaves crumple). 

Remedy: Spray with nicotine sulphate when 
pests appear, repeating when and as often as 
necessary. Crumpled leaves protect lice from 
. spray, and should be picked and burned. Ap- 
ply spray to under side of leaves, to strike 
aphids. 
Bacterial blight— (Water soaked spots on leaves 
and pods) — No satisfactory remedy. Pull up 
and burn plants. 



CABBAGE AND CAULIFLOWER. 



Club root — (Root swells and decays). — Pull up and 
burn plants. 

Frei entile: In spring apply 1 lb. lime to 
each 8 sq. ft. of ground before setting out 
plants 
Black rol -(Leaves turn yellow, then brown and 
black, and decay. Pull up and burn plants.) 

Preventize: Soak seed 15 minutes in solution 
made of % oz. formalin and 3 pints water; 
rinse in clean water; plant at once 
Yellows — (Leaves turn yellow, then brown, and 
drop). Pull up and burn plants. 
Prez'entite: Treat seed as for black rot. 
Cabbage worms — (Kat leaves). 

Remedy: When worrns appear spray with 
arsenal e of lead, repeating if necessary before 
heads form. Do not use arsenate of lead after 
heads form. Pyretlirum may be used instead 
of arsenate of lead and with it spraying may 
be done after heads form. 
Aphids or lice — (Suck sap from leaves) — 

Remedy:' Spray with nicotine sulphate solu- 
tion when pests appear; repeat if necessary. 
Cabbage looper — (Eats leaves). 

Remedy: Treat as for cabbage worms. 



Cabbage Maggots— (Tunnel inside of roots). 

Preventive: When plants are set otit take a 
piece of tarred building paper 2 or 3 inches in 
dfitpieter, cut a slit from one side to center, 
" and\4 or 5 slits at center. Fit this aroutid 
stem by slipping plant through the long slit, 
and i>ress paper firmly against ground, to 
prevent young maggots from reaching root. 

Black leg — (Diseased, sunken areas on stem, leaf 
stem and leaves, plant becoming purplish) — 
There is no remedy. Pull up and burn plants. 
Preventive: As soon as seed are planted in 
seed bed sprinkle 2 quarts Bordeaux mixture 
on each 5 sq ft. Repeat in 2 weeks and again 
just before plants are taken out of seed bed. 

Cutworms — (Dark colored, «at young plants off at 
surface of earth). 

Remedy: Spread poisoned bran mash over 
ground before setting out plants; spread 
around plants when set. Afterwards spread 
poisoned bait around plants as necessary to 
control worms. It is wise to wrap paper 
around stem from leaves to root just before 
setting out. Cutworms are especially abundant 
where sod has grown. 



CELERY AND CELERIAC. 



Blight or leaf spot — (Gray or brown spots; droop- 
ing stems). 

Remedy: Spray young seedlings, in seed box 
or seed bed, witli Bordeau.x mixture. Spray 
again as soon as set in garden, repeating 10 to 
14 days later. Repeat again if necessary. 
Spraying in seed bed must not be neglected 
if disease appears. 

SWISS CHARD. 



Damping off — (Small seedlings dying in seed bed). 

Preventive: Care should be taken to water 

and partially shade the young seedlings in 

hot and dry weather. As soon as seeds are 

planted cover bed with thin layer of sand. 



Leal spot — (Symptoms same as with beets). 

Remedy: When disease appears, spray as di- 
rected for beets. (Usually no spraying will 
be found necessary). Wash sprayed leaves 
well before using. 

CORN 



SPINACH. 

Aphids — (Suck sap from leaves). 

Remedy: Spray under side of leaves with 
nicotine sulphate when aphids appear. Re- 
peat a second and third time if necessary. 



Smut — (Large, black, irregular swellings on ears 
or tops). The only remedy is to cut off and 
burn the smut swellings. 

Corn ear worms— (Bore through husk and eats 
the young kernels). Kill all worms which 
are found when husking corn for use. 



Cutworms— (A dark worm which cuts plant off 
at surface of earth when plant is small). 

Remedy: Use poisoned bait in the same 
mantier prescribed for cabbage. Repeat if nec- 
essary. Being a night worker the cut-worm 
is usually found in the morning in the ground 
by cut off plants. Dig out and kill. 



CUCUMBERS. 



'Anthracnose— (Brown spots on leaves). 

Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture when 
plants begin to form vines. Repeat two 
or three times if necessary, at intervals of 2 
weeks. 
Downy mildew — (Yellow spots on leaves). 

Remedy: Treat as for anthracnose. 
Wilt— (Leaves droop and wilt quickly).— Pull 
up and burn plants. Striped beetles act as 
carriers of this disease and shpuld be con- 
trolled carefully 
Stink bug or squash bug— (Sucks sap from leaves 
and injects an injurious substance). 

Remedy: Pick them or shake them into pan 
of water and kerosene. Destroy egg masses. 
Place small pieces of boards near hills. The 
bugs will collect underneath these and may 
be easily crushed. 



Striped beetle or 12-spotted beetle— (Both eat 

leaves). 

Preventive: Cover plants with protectors of 
cloth or wire gauze. 

Control: Mix arsenate of lead in the Bor- 
deaux mixture which is used for diseases. 
Another remedy is to cover leaves with to- 
bacco dust. Treatment should be given as 
soon as beetles appear, or when covers are 
removed. Repeat 5 days later and again 5 
days later, with further repetitions when nec- 
essary. 
Vine borer — (Worm which bores into vine af sur- 
face of earth). 

Remedy: Carefully cut the vine lengthwise, 
remove borer and kill. As plants grow throw 
earth over vine at every other joint, in order 
that new roots may form. 



22 



WAR VEGETABLE GARDENING. 



EGGPLANT. 



Blight or wilt. — (Whole plant wilts) — No remedy. 

Pull up and burn plants 
Flea beetle — (Small jumping beetle which eats 

leaves). 
Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture and 

arsenate of le^d combination. 

ONIONS. 

Thrlps — (Very small sucking insects, which cause 
leaves to turn a silvery color or whitish, and 
later to curl and twist). 

Remedy: Spray with nicotine sulphate solu- 
tion when pests appear, repeating once or 
f' ice as necessary. 
Cut Worms — (Dark worms which attack onions as 
they do corn). 

Remedy: Same as with corn. 



Anthracnose— (Dark sunken spots in truit; cracks 

in leaves). 

Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture when 
plants are set, repeating 10 days later and 
again 10 days later. 

PEAS. 

Powdery mildew — (Covers plant with powdery 
white growth). 

Remedy: Use pulverized sulphur or floxyers 
of sulphur, or Bordeaux mixture, by sprink- 
ling on plants when mildew appears, just be- 
fore bloom appears. Repeat if necessary two 
weeks later and again 2 weeks later. 
Pea aphis. 

Remedy: Same as for bean aphids. 



POTATOES. 



Early blight — (Brown spots, with concentric 
rings on leaves. Worst in moist weather). 

Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture when 
plants are C inches high. Repeat two weeks 
later and again two weeks later. 

Late blight — (Dark brown spots on leaves, ap- 
pearing water soaked and not having con- 
centric rings. The spots become yellow and 
the leaves die Worst in hot, sultry weather, 
August and September. Lives over winter in 
seed potatoes). 
Remedy: Same as for early blight. 



PUMPKIN. 

This plant is subject to the same diseases and in- 
sects as cucumber, and should be treated the 
same way. 

RADISH. 

Cabbage maggot — (Small worm which tunnels into 
the radisli). 

Preventive: Sprinkle tobacco dust along row 
when seed is planted, or spread sand on 
which kerosene has been sprinkled along the 
row when plants are small. Burn all plants 
that may be infested. 

TURNIP. 

Subject to the same diseases and -insects as cab- 
bage, and should be treated the same way. 



Colorado potato beetle— (The common Potato bug;, 
which eats leaves). 

Remedy: Spray with arsenate of lead when 

beetles appear. Repeat when and as often 

as is necessary. Hand picking i-s effective, as 

is also knocking the bugs into a pan of water 

containing some kerosene. 

Blister beetle — Long black potato bug or Old 

Fashioned potato bug. (Eats leaves). 

Remedy: Same as for Colorado potato beetle. 

Flea beetle — (Small, jumping insect which eatg 

leaves, usually appearing when plant is small). 

Remedy: Spray as for Colorado potato beetle. 

RUTABAGA. 

This plant is subject to the same pests as cab- 
bage and should be treated the same way. 

RHUBARB. 

Flea beetle — (Eats small holes in the leaves). 

Rtmedy: Same as for flea beetle of potato, 
applied when beetles first appear and repeated 
when necessary. 

SQUASH. 

This plant is subject to the same diseases and in- 
sects -as cucumbers and should be treated the 
same way. 



TOMATOES. 



Leaf spot, or blight. — (Leaves become spotted, 
turn yellow and drop; stems dry up and fruits 
drop). 

Remedy: Spraying is not entirely effective 
but. is helpful. Spray with Bordeaux mix- 
ture while plants are small in seed box or 
seed bed. Repeat soon after transplanting to 
garden and repeat again 3 weeks later and 
every 3 weeks while disease exists. 

Fruit rot — (Decay begins at blossom end of 
fruit). 

Prerentive: In the absence of an effective 
remedy the only safeguard is to cultivate well 
and be careful to water as the plants need. 



Anthracnose — (Sunken, discolored spots in Iruit, 
followed by decay). 
Remedy: Same as for leaf spot. 
Wilt— (Causes plant to wilt and die)— Pull up and 

burn plants. 
Tomato worms— (Large green naked caterpillar, 
which eats leaves). 

Remedy: Pick by hand and destroy. (These 
worms do not often appear in large numbers). 
Cutworms — (Dark worms which cut plants off at 
the surface of earth). 
Remedy: Same as with cabbage. 
Flea beetle — (Small jumping beetle which eats 
small holes in leaves). 
Remedy: Same as with potatoes. 



WATERMELON. 

leaves; small 



Anthracnose — (Brown spots 
sunken spots on fruit). 

Remedy: Spray with Bordeaux mixture when 
melons are half grown. Repeat 10 days later 
and again if necessary. 



Insects— This plant is subject to the same in- 
sects as cucumber and should be treated the 
same way. - 



The seed shortage this year makes it important for Home Gardeners to save seed from 
this year's crop for next year's garden. Instructions for saving and storing seed are given 
on Page 31. 



PLANTING TABLE 



VcKetable 



Asparagus, seed— 
Asparagus, plants 

Beans, snap 

Beans, pole 

Beans Lima, bush 

Beans Lima, pole 

Beets — 

Brussels sprouts 
Cabbage, early- 



Cabbage, late-.-. 

Carrot 

Cauliflower 



Celery 



Chard 



Corn, sweet — 
Cress, upland- 
Cucumber 

Eggplant 



Quantity 

required 

for 100 

feet of row 



1 oz 

CO to 80 

Yi to 1 pt. 
V2 pt- 



/£ y^ ■ 

}^ to 1 pt_ 



Vi pt- 
2 oz — 
>4 oz_ 
Va, oz- 



J4 oz- 
1 oz_ 



Distance Apart 
In Inches 



Rows 



1 packet- 



J4 oz.. 



12 to 24_ 

36 to 48.. 
20 to 21_ 
36 to 48 
18 to 24-. 

36 to 48- 
li to 18- 
24 to 30- 
24 to 30_ 



24 to 36- 
18 to 24- 
24 to 30- 



_ 18 to 36 



Endive 

Horse-radish .. 

Kale 

Kohl-rabi . 

Lettuce 

Muskmelon — 



Okra, or gumbo- 

Onion, seed 

Onion, sets 

Parsley 

Parsnip 

Peas 

Pepper — 



Potato, Irish 

Potato, sweet 

Pumpkin 

Radish 

Rhubarb, plants. 



Rutabaga 

Salsify 

Spinach 




In Row 



3 to 5 

15 to 20 . 

4 to 6 

Hills 24-36 

4 10 6 

Hills 24 to 36- 

5 or 6 to ft__ 

16 to 24 

12 to 18 



4 to 8_-. 



Squash, bush 

Squash, late 

Tomato, seed 

Tomato, plants.-. 



Turnip 

Veg. marrow- 
Watermelon 



5 lbs_._ 
75 slips 

Vi oz— 

1 oz 

33 



54 oz. 

V2. oz. 
1 oz... 



IS 


to 


9.4 


iO 


to 


36 


12 


to 


18 


48 


to 


72 


24 


to 


36 


18. 
24 






to 


30 


18 


to 


24 


18 


to 


24. 


12 


to 


18 


72 


to 


96 


36 


to 


48 


12 


to 


18 


12 


to 


18 


12 


to 


18 


18 


to 


24 


36 to 


48 


18 


to 


24.._-. 



Depth of 
Planting 
Inches 



Vz to 1- 
8 to 10- 

l._ .- 

1 - - 

l._ 

1 

1 to 2_ 

/2 



Time of Plantine 



Mature 

(In days, 

except as 

noted 




24 to 30 

a or 10 to f t- 
4 or 5 to ft- 

3 to 6 



Yi oz 

Vi oz..— 

Vi oz 

33 to 40- 



Vi oz 

Yz oz 

Vi oz 



24 to 36 

36 to 60 


96 to 


144__ 


12 
36 


to 

to 


18 

60 


18 
18 
12 


to 
to 

to 


24 
24 
18 


36 

84 


to 
to 


48 

120 



4 or 6 to ft- 

15 to ft 

15 10 18. - - 



14 to 18 

14 .^.. 



1 to 2 

/j to 1., 
1 to 2. 



^ to I.. 
3 to 4_ 

Vi-- 



Early spring 

Early spring 

April to August 

ill ay and June _. 

May and June 

April to August 

April to July... - - 

April to August 

March and April. (Start 
in hotbed during Feb- 
ruary) — 

May and June... 

April to June... 

April to June. (Start in 
hotbed during February 
or March) — 

May and June. (Start in 
hotbed during March or 
April) — 

April to July _ — 

May to July 

March to May - - 

April to July 

April and May. (Start in 

hotbed during March). 

M idsummer 

Early spring 

August and September_ 

April to August 

March to September — 

April to June. (Start 

early plants in hotbed 

during March) 

May and June 

April and May 

Autumn and March to 

May. -. — - 

Early spring and Septem- 
ber. 



to 144 



3 to 4 yrs_ 
1 to 3 yrs- 

to to 65 

50 to 80 

60 to 90 

fif) to 80. 

60 to 80 

60 to 80 

90 to 13U_.. 



90 to 130_ 
75 to 110- 



100 to 130_ 

120 to 150_ 

60 to 80 

60 to 100 — 

30 to 40 

60 to 80 

100 to 140— 

90 to 180 — 
1 to 2 yrs- 
90 to 120 — 

60 to 80 

60 to 90-:.__ 
120 to 150„ 



60 to 90 

130 to 150- 
90 to 120_ 



36 to 48. 
36 to 48.- 



18 to 24__ 
96 to 144_ 
96 to 120... 




April and May 

March to June 

May and June. (Start 
early plants in hotbed 

during March)__ 

March to June 

March to June... 

May - 



March to September.. 
Early spring...- 



May and June 

Early spring— - 

September or very early 

spring 

April to June..- 



1 April to June. 



May and June. (Start 
early plants in hotbed 
during February and 

March) 

April and August — — 

April to June 

May -.. — — - 



90 to 120_ 

125 to 160— 

40 to 80 

100 to 140.- 



80 to 140... 
100 to 130..- 

100 to 140- 

20 to 40 -. 

1 to 3 yrs. 

60 to 80 - 

120 to 180- 
30 to 60 



60 to 80 

120 to 160..- 



100 to 140 
80 to 100— 



60 to 80 . 

110 to 140- 
100 to 120- 



"NOTE— Set Rhubarb plants so that growing tips arc at surface of ground. 



Absolute dates for planting can not be given, because of variations in seasons from 
year" to year and varying climatic conditions in different sections. For general guidance 
see "When to Plant," on Page 11. 

23 



PART II. 

HOME STORAGE MANUAL FOR 
VEGETABLES AND APPLES 

As a wartime measure no form of Food Conservation is more important 
than the home storage of .vegetables for winter use. Canning and drying are 
essential to the nation's food supply, and should be practiced to the fullest pos- 
sible extent, but they do not take the place of storage. To keep vegetables in 
their natural state is the simplest form of preparation for winter needs. By 
taking proper precautions against decay and freezing an abundant supply of 
certain kinds of fresh vegetables may be kept at minimum expenditure of 
money and effort. 



STORAGE NEEDED AS A WAR MEASURE. 



The importance of making provision for 
winter food needs is even greater this year 
than it was in 1917. Every pound of food- 
stuffs that can be spared for- export will be 
needed in Europe for feeding American 
troops and to prevent the starvation of the 
domestic and military populations of the 
Allied Nations. Every pound of vegetables 
stored away for home uses will release ex- 
portable food. A nation at war is a nation 
with a food problem.- A nation with a food 
shortage is a nation in peril. For this 
reason it is of vital importance that no 
vegetables of high food value be allowed 
to go to waste. 

The home gardening campaign con- 
ducted by the National War Garden Com- 
mission will this year result in the crea- 
tion of a vast new planting area. The 
output of these gardens is greatly in ex- 
cess of immediate needs. Unless proper 
steps are taken to safeguard the surplus 
the waste will be prodigious.. This Com- 
mission will stimulate nation-wide activity 
in canning and drying. An important pur- 
pose of this booklet is to arouse similar in- 
terest in the storage of vegetables. 

WHAT AND HOW TO STORE. 

There are many vegetables which can 
be stored to good advantage. Included in 
the list are Potatoes, Beets. Carrots, 



Parsnips, Onions, Sweet Potatoes, Celery, 
Salsify, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Brussels 
Sprouts, Winter Squash, Turnips, Beans 
and Lima Beans. Good results in storage 
depend upon : 

1 — ^Ventilation. 

2 — Regulation of temperature. 

3 — Sufficient moisture. 

4 — Quality of vegetables stored. 

For some vegetables satisfactory storage 
places are afforded by the pantry shelf or 
attic. For others the cellar is the right 
place. For others outdoor storage is pref- 
erable. This may take the form of pits or 
banks, or it may be done in hillside caves 
or cellars. 

COMMUNITY STORAGE. 

Especially good results may be obtained 
if several neighboring families will form 
community clubs to provide storage facili- 
ties. In this way very complete provision 
may be made for handling winter supplies 
at slight trouble and expense to the indi- 
vidual household. 

Community or co-operative storage may 
be effected in various ways. Several fami- 
lies may join together and construct out- 
door cellars or they may join in the use of 
an available building conveniently located, 
in which vegetables may be stored in large 
quantities. 



STORE YOUR SURPLUS FOR WINTER 



25 




Fig. 1— This suggests an arrangement for storage in a cool cellar. An earth floor is best, as it gives 
off some moisture. If the floor is of concrete it should be covered with 2 or 3 inches of sand and this 
should be sprinkled with water occasionally. In the drawing the pane in the upper right hand corner 
of the window is shown to be missing. This is to allow the escape of heated air. In severely cold 
weather close this opening. The stove pipe fitted into the place for one of the lower panes admits 
cold air Instead of a stove pipe a wooden flue, made of old boards or parts of boxes may be used. Bins 
and boxes should be placed on slats to lift them from the floor and allow- circulation, tor this same 
purpose bins and boxes should be at least one or two inches from the wall. Air holes bored in sides 
and bottom of bins and boxes help circulation. Protect glass jars from light. 



CELLAR 



Beets 
Cabbage 
Carrots 
Celery 



Parsnips 
Potatoes 
Salsify 
Turnips 



In a house heated by a cellar furnace 
vegetables may be stored to good advantage 
in the cellar. Partition off a small room as 
far as possible from the heating plant. Two 
sides of this room should be outside walls. 
There should be at least one outside win- 
dow, for temperature regulation and vent- 
ilation. The suggested arrangement in 
Figure 1 shows ventilation afforded by a 
stove-pipe inserted through one of the 
lower panes of the window, to admit cold 
air and indicates the removal of one of 
the upper panes of glass to allow the es- 
cape of warm air. This affords constant 
circulation. 

An earth floor is desirable, but this is not 
always possible, as most city and many 
town and country houses have floors of 
concrete. In a cellar with a concrete floor 
the concrete should be covered with two or 



STORAGE. 

three inches of sand, which should be sprin- 
kled with water from time to time. 

In this room may be stored Beets, 'Car- 
rots, Cabbage, Celery, Parsnips, Salsify, 
Turnips and Potatoes. (Special attention is 
given Potatoes on Page 29). Put them in 
bins or in boxes, baskets, slat crates or bar- 
rels. It is best to use movable containers 
and small ones. Bins should not hold more 
than two or three bushels apiece, as the 
larger bulk brings danger of heating and 
consequent decay. There should be full 
protection from mice. 

The vegetables should be harvested when 
the ground is dry, if possible, and should 
lie outdoors a few hours until any surface 
moisture on them has evaporated. Remove 
the tops, leaving an inch or so, from beets, 
turnips, carrots and salsify. To leave an 
inch or so of top prevents bleeding and dry- 
ing out. Sort vegetables according to size 
and condition. Imperfect or bruised ones 
should be selected for immediate use and 
only sound vegetables should be stored. 



26 



HOME STORAGE MANUAL 



In cellar storage beets, turnips and car- 
rots may be buried in slightly damp sand 
to good purpose. 

Cabbages may be stored in the cellar in 
boxes or barrels of earth or sand, or they 
may be placed in a cool cellar on the floor, 
with roots up. 

Celery, to be stored in a cellar, should be 
allowed to stay in the garden until there 
is danger of severe freezing. In order to 



f^- 



"*/ 



Fig. 2 — For storage in cellar without heater celery 
should be set in two or three inches of sand or 
light soil and the plants then banked with soil. 
The soil must not be allowed to become dry. 

prolong the period of keeping it outdoors 
the plants should be protected from frost 
by banking them with earth to within two 
or three inches of the tops. On cold nights 
protect the tops with blankets, mats, straw 
or other covering. The importance of not 
harvesting at the first appearance of frost 



arises from the fact that this period is likely 
to be followed by warm weather, which 
will cause decay by creating too high a 
temperatures in the place of storage. With 
the arrival of steady "cool weather which 
will freeze the plants, dig them, leaving 
some soil adhering to the roots. For cellar 
storage place the plants upright, covering 
the roots with three or four inches of sand 
or light soil. (Fig. 2). Earth may be^ 
banked around the stalks but this is not 
necessary. Water the soil ^occasionally, be- 
ing sure to keep the leaves and stalks dry to 
prevent decay. 

Celery may also be stored in cellar boxes, 
following these same directions. 

The cellar storage room may also be used 
for the storage of fresh fruits and for 
canned goods, preserves and dried vege- 
tables and fruits. Fig. 1 shows a suggested 
arrangement for shelves for canned and 
dried articles. If the shelves are not pro- 
tected from light by doors all canned goods 
in glass should be wrapped in brown paper, 
to prevent bleaching of the contents as a 
result of exposure to the light. 

Wide fluctuations of temperature should 
be avoided. The ideal temperature is 40 
degrees F. The root cellar should be kept 
at not less than 32 degrees and not over 
50 degrees. 



PIT STORAGE. 



Beets 


Potatoes 


Carrots 


Turnips 


Cabbage 


Salsify 


Celery 


Parsnips 



For outdoor storage one of the best forms 
is a mound shaped pit. To prepare for this 
remove two or three inches of earth and 
line this shallow excavation with hay, straw, 
leaves or similar material. Place the vege- 
tables on this in a conical' pile. Cover the 
vegetables with several inches of the ma- 
terial used in making the lining. Cover this 
with 3 or 4 inches of earth. As severe 
weather approaches the outer covering 
should be increased. An additional layer 
of hay or similar material may be placed 
over the layer of earth and on top of this 
another layer of earth. In extremely cold 
climates the total thickness of earth layers 
should be as much as 12 inches. Over the 



outer layer of earth pile manure or corn 
stalks for added protection. To give ventila- 
tion have the inner layer of straw project 
through the outer covering and extend to 
the top of the cone. For protection from 




Fig. 3 — Shallow bins or shelves with board sides, 
for storing root crops in cool cellar. The air of 
the room must not be allowed to become too dry, 
as this will cause the vegetables to shrivel. Pota- 
toes must be protected from light. 



STORE YOUK SURPLUS FOR WINTER 



27 



rain and snow this opening should be cov- 
ered. A board laid over the top and 
weighted with a stone is suitable for this 
purpose. An idea of the construction is 
given in Fig. 4. 

It is well to make several small pits 
rather than one large one, for the reason 
that when a pit has been once opened the 
entire contents should be removed. This 
form of storage is used for potatoes, beets, 
carrots, turnips, parsnips, cabbage and sal- 
sify. It is well to store several varieties 
of vegetables in one pit so that the opening 
of a single pit will afford a supply of all of 
them. In following this plan it is desirable 
to separate the various crops by the use of 
straw or leaves. 

When a pit has been opened it is impos- 
sible to give adequate protection to vegeta- 
bles therein. For this reason those not re- 
quired for immediate use should be re- 




Fig. 4 — Irish potatoes in an outdoor mound. This 
mound must be in a well drained location. After 
removing 2 or 3 inches of earth, pile the potatoes 
on a 2 or 3 inch layer of dry straw, leaves or hay. 
Cover the vegetables with 2 or 3 inches of straw, 
leaves or hay, and cover this with 3 or 4 inches of 
earth. Increase the thic^kness of the earth layer as 
severe weather approaches, making it as much as 
12 inches in extremely cold climates. Manure or 
corn stalks should be piled over the mound. The 
straw, coming to the top, will afford ventilation. 
The opening should be covered for protection from 
rain. 

moved, placed in the basement storage 
room, or other cool place, and used as 
needed. This emphasizes the importance 
of making small pits,- each one holding not 
more than two to six weeks' supply. 

For late varieties of cabbage the pit 
should be long and narrow. The cabbages 
are placed in rows with heads down and 
covered with dirt. No other covering is 
needed. The removal of a portion of this 
supply does not disturb the remainder. 
(Fig. 5). 

Cabbages may also be stored by placing 
the whole plants in a trench, roots down, 
and plants close together. The roots 



should be covered with dirt. A frame 
should be built around the trench by driv- 
ing stakes at the corners and placing 
boards against these to form the enclos- 
ure. The construction of such a trench is 
shown in Fig. 6. The boards are banked 
with earth and across the top of the trench 



Fig. 5— Cabbage stored, roots up, in a bank of 
earth. The place must be well drained The cab- 
bages are covered with earth, but this need not be 
as thick as'for some vegetables, as slight freezing 
does not hurt cabbage. 

boards or poles are placed, supported by 
the frame. These should be covered with 
straw, hay or corn fodder, for protection 
of the contents of the trench. Two feet of 
the straw or similar material will be re- 
quired in cold climates. 

Mature heads of cabbage of long-keep- 
ing sorts, such as Danish Ball Head, may 
be cut from the plant and stored one layer 
deep on shelves in cool, frost-proof cellars. 

In storing celery in a pit or trench, the 
plants are set side by side as close as they 
may be packed and wide boards set up 
along the outside edges of the pit. Dirt is 
banked up against these boards and the 
top covered with corn fodder or similar 




Fig. 6— This shows cabbage, pulled with roots, 
stored by being set in a shallow trench, with roots 
down. The roots are covered with earth. The 
stakes, projecting 2 feet above the surface of the 
earth, serve as supports for boards or poles which 
make an enclosure. This frame should be banked 
with dirt (b). Across the top place poles or plank 
and cover with straw, hay or corn fodder (a). 
Make the trench as long as necessary and any 
width up to 8 feet. 

covering. If celery is kept in the row 
where grown the earth should be banked 
around the plants with the approach of 
cold ■ weather. For freezing weather 



28 



HOME STORAGE MANUAL 



bring the dirt to the tops of the plants and 
cover the ridge with coarse manure, straw 




Fig. 7 — This shows celery set into an outdoor pit 
or trench for storage. Boards should be placed 
along the edges of the pit or trench and dirt 
banked against these boards. The tops of the 
celery should be covered with corn fodder, straw 
or similar covering. The celery may be removed 
easily at any time. 

OUTDOOR 

Beets Potatoes 

Carrots Turnips 

Parsnips Salsify 

Cabbage. 
An outdoor cellar makes a good storage 
place. In cold climates this should be par- 
tially underground. A side-hill location is 
desirable for ease in handling the vegeta- 
bles. To make such a cellar dig an excava- 
tion and in this erect a frame by setting . 
posts in rows near the dirt walls. Saw 
these posts off at uniform height and place 
plates on their tops. On these plates place 
rafters. Board up completely with the ex- 



or fodder, using stakes or boards to hold 
the covering in place. Only late maturing 
and late planted celery can be safely 
stored. (Fig. 7). 

A hotbed, instructions for the making 
of which are given on Page 6 (Fig. 2). 
in Part I. of this booklet, makes an excel- 
lent place for outdoor storage for celery. 
The surplus earth and manure should, be 
removed and a board covering should be 
substituted for the sash and glass. Store 
the celery in the same manner as in pit 
torage. For protection from cold use any 
covering that will prevent freezing. 

Celery should not be stored with turnips 
or cabbage. It will absorb odors from 
these vegetables and its flavor will be im- 
paired. 

CELLAR. 

ception of a place for the door. The whole 
should be covered with dirt and sod, and in 
cold climates added protection should be 
given by a layer of straw, fodder or simi- 
lar material. Ventilate with a flue. A dirt 
floor is best, as some moisture is desirable. 
This form of storage is especially good for 
the joint use of several families. 

On a more pretentious scale cellars of 
this nature may be made of brick, stone or 
concrete. Such cellars afford practicallv 
perfect storage room for potatoes, carrots:. 
cabbages, parsnips, beets, turnips and 
salsify. 



VARIOUS METHODS. 



Permanent cold frames, with deep pits, 
may also be tised to advantage in storing 
vegetables if the drainage is made thor- 
ough. After the frames are filled the sash 
should be covered with boards and the out- 
side banked with soil or manure. As the 
weather becomes severe a covering of straw 
or mats is necessary. This covering should 
be heavy enough to prevent freezing. 

Cauliflower and Brussels sprouts which 
have not matured may be taken up and 
planted in shallow boxes of soil in a light 
place in the cellar. If kept well watered 
they will mature for winter use. 

Dry beans may be stored in cloth bags 
in a pantry or in any cool, dry and well 
ventilated room. The bags should be hung 



away from the floor to prevent damage by 
rats and mice. 

Onions require a cool, dry place. They 
should be cured by being exposed to the 
air for a few days in the shade. The tops 
should be removed before storing. Keep 
them in baskets, trays or other holders 
which let the air circulate. Onions are not 
damaged by temperatures slightly below 
freezing, and for storing them the attic is 
better than the cellar. 

Squashes are susceptible to cold and 
moisture, and for that reason should be 
stored in a dry place where the tempera- 
ture will be between 50 and 60 degrees F. 
Squashes may be kept by placing them in a 
single layer on a dry floor and covering 



STORE YOUR SURPLUS FOR WINTER 



29 



with rugs or carpets, but care must be 
taken that the stems are not broken off and 
that they do not become bruised before 
storing. Whenever it is found that any of 
the squashes or pumpkins are showing signs 
of decay, the sound portions should be 
canned. 

Tomatoes may be saved by pulling up the 
entire plant before freezing weather. The 
vines should be suspended by the roots in a 
cool cellar. The tomatoes will gradually 



ripen. If these tomatoes, when cooked, are 
found to be acid, the acidity can be over- 
come by using baking soda. 

Parsley may be saved by transplantmg 
into flower pota late in the fall. These 
should be kept in windows where they will 
receive sunshine. 

Parsnips and salsify are not injured by 
remaining in the ground all winter. Enough 
for immediate needs may be dug in the 
fall and the others harvested as required. 



POTATOES. 



As one of the staple vegetables, potatoes 
are entitled to special consideration for 
winter storage. If you have raised a sur- 
plus crop in jour own garden save as many 
as possible for your winter's supply. If 
you have none of your own raising it is well 
to buy them early in the fall, at the time 
of >4reatest supply and lowest prices, and 
stoje them for the winter, making yourself 
independent of the market during the time 
of highest prices. 

Potatoes mAy be stored in cellars, pits 
and outdoor cellars, as already described. 
Before they are stored they should be al- 
lowed to dry. This is done by digging 
them on bright days, if possible, and allow- 
ing them to lie alongside the rows for a few 
hours. Before storing sort them carefully 
as to size and soundness. The smaller po- 
tatoes and those which show signs of 
threatened decay should not be stored, but 
should be used early. 

The success of potato storage depends on 
the exclusion of light, proper ventilation, 
the proper amount of moisture, the size of 
the pile or container and the type of the 
tubers stored. 

In storing potatoes it should be remem- 
bered that the purpose is to protect them 
from great changes of temperature and 
from light. Even a small amount of light 
changes the food value of potatoes. There 
should be enough moisture to keep the po- 
tatoes from wilting, but not enough to 
cause moisture to gather on the surface. 

If potatoes are stored in a place where 
there is moisture in the air, provision 
should be made to permit free circulation 
of air through the containers. Barrels, 
boxes and bins. may be ventilated by boring 
holes in sides and bottoms. Barrels, boxes 



and crates should be set on slats to hold 
them off the floor and allow the air to cir- 
culate underneath. 

If the air of the storage place is dry it 
should not be allowed to circulate freely 
through the containers, as dry air will 
cause withering of the potatoes. In such 
storage places the potatoes should be put 
in containers made airtight by lining bot- 
tom and sides with several thicknesses of 
newspaper and covering the top snugly in 
the same manner. 

The temperature of a cellar storage room 
for potatoes should be carefully controlled 
to prevent wide fluctuations. A constant 
temperature- around 40 degrees F. is desir- 
able. It should not be allowed to go below 
32 degrees or above 50 degrees. 

Potatoes should not be washed before 
storage. If they begin sprouting in the 
spring all the shoots should be rubbed off. 
The bins should be examined occasionally 
and any rotting potatoes removed to pre- 
vent the spread of infection. 
Bins. 

Do not have one large bin for potatoes, 
as those in the center will be subjected to 
too high temperature, which will cause all 
of them to go through a sweating process. 
Too large a bin makes good ventilation im- 
possible. Open bins, not more than a foot 
deep, arranged as a shelf, as shown in Fig.- 
3, are the best for cellar storage. 
Pits. 

A small pit provided with ventilation, as " 
shown in Fig. 4, is the most satisfactory. 
It is better to have several small pits'than 
one large one, as the entire contents must 
be removed when a pit 's opened. Place 
not more than two to six weeks' supply in 
a single pit. 



30 



HOME STORAGE MANUAL 



SWEET POTATOES. 



In storing sweet potatoes the important 
points to be kept in mind are that the po- 
tatoes must be well matured before they 
are dug; they must be handled with ex- 
treme care ; they must be allowed to dry or 
cure thoroughly before storage, and they 
must be kept at an even temperature. A 
test for maturity is to cut or break a swee.t 
potato and expose it to the air for a few 
minutes. If the surface of the cut or break 
dries the potato may be considered mature, 
but if moisture remains on the surface it is 
not properly ripe. In sections where frosts 
come early digging should take place about 
the time the first frost is expected, without 
regard to maturity. Care. in handling is nec- 



essary to prevent bruising and subsequent 
decay. Curing is done by keeping them at 
an even temperature of 80 to 85 degrees F. 
•for a week or ten days after harvesting, to 
dry off the moisture. The room in which 
this is done must be ventilated in order that 
the moisture-laden air may escape. 

For storing sweet potatoes on a large 
scale a specially constructed house is de- 
sirable. For home storage the roots may 
be kept near the furnace in the cellar or 
near the furnace chimney in a vacant up- 
stairs room or in the attic. The room 
should be kept fairly warm. After curing 
the temperature should be maintained 
around 55 degrees F. 



APPLES. 



Apple storage is simple and is desirable 
not only for those who grow their own 
apples but also for those who depend on 
the market for their supply. The one es- 
sential is that the fruit be kept in a cool, 
dry place, and so stored as to be in no 
danger of absorbing odors from vegetables 
stored nearby. 

Families raising no apples, but having a 
good storage place, meeting the require- 
ments as to temperature, will find it advan- 
tageous to buy a winter's supply in the 
fall, when prices are low. The cost of pur- 
chases thus made will be considerably less 
than if apples are bought as needed during 
the winter. 

To store, sort apples carefully, removing 
and using at once all fruit which is bruised 
or shows signs of decay. The best results 
are secured by wrapping each apple in half 
a sheet of newspaper and storing in barrels, 
boxes, crates or bins. The wrapping pre- 
vents the apples from touching each other 
and thus prevents the spread of decay which 
may start. It also protects the apples from 
odors if vegetables are stored near- 
by. Apples absorb odors freely from po- 
tatoes, onions, turnips and other vegetables 
and should never be stored, unwrapped, in 



the same room with vegetables of any 
kind. In addition to wrapping the indi- 
vidual apples it is desirable to line the bar- 
rel or other container with a half inch 
thiclcness of newspapers, on the bottom 
and sides, and then cover the top with 
newspapers and either nail a cover on or 
tie the papers securely with strings. This 
will keep odors out. The lining and cover- 
ing give full protection and make it possible 
to store apples in the general cellar storage 
room. 

Remember that the cellar or other place 
in which they are stored must be cool. A 
temperature of 32 degrees F. is ideal, and 
the temperature should not be allowed to 
go above 40 degrees if it can be held this 
low. 

Apples may be stored unwrapped in bar- 
rels, boxes, crates or bins if proper atten- 
tion is paid to sorting, to providing a cool 
place for storage and to occasional sort- 
ing during the winter, for the removal of 
possible decayed fruit. If any of the fruit 
in any container is found to have begun 
to decay all the apples in all the containers 
should be sorted at once and decaying fruit 
removed. Apples stored unwrapped must 
not be kept in the room with vegetables. 



This manual was prepared by the Commission's experts and is based on their own research and 
experience, supplemented by information procured from the United States Department of Agriculture, 
from Agricultural Colleges and Experime"t Stations and from other sources. 



STORE YOUR SURPLUS FOR WINTER 



31 



SAVE NEXT YEAR'S SEED FROM THIS YEAR'S GARDEN. 

Owners of gardens will find it a great 
help next spring if seed have been s&ved 
from this year's garden. Ordinarily it is 



Some of the seed desirable for saving, 
because they mature in a single season, are 
as follows : 



more satisfactory to 
purchase seed from re- 
liable seedsmen. The 
increased planting of 
home gardens, the 
poor crops of seed, 
and the use of seed for 
food have caused a 
shortage of seed and, 
as an emergency meas- 
ure, each gardener 
should save as- much 
seed as possible. Sav- 
ing of seed is easily 
done, though it re- 
quires care and atten- 
tion. There are many 
vegetables from which seed may be saved. 
In saving seed select them from plants of 
a single variety grown by itself if possible 
rather than from plants where more than 
one variety have been planted. When there 
are two or more varieties of the same 
vegetable growing side by side, cross fer- 
tilization frequently takes place and stand- 
ard seed can not always be obtained. Se- 
lect plants which are free from disease and 
which bear high production of crop. Mark 
selected plants with strings. 




Fig. 8 — In selecting 
corn to be saved for 
seed, choose the most 
perfect ears. 



Tomato, Cucumber, Squash. 
Allow fruit to become slightly over-ripe, but not 
decayed. Scrape out seed pulp, let it soak in its 
own juice or in water until the seed begin to sep- 
arate out and settle to the bottom. Then free 
seed by washing the pulp away and spread in 
layers to dry. 

Winter Squash, Pumpkin, Muskmelon, Water- 
melon. 

When fruit is opened for food, select the best 
formcdv^seed, wash and dry. 

Beans, Peas. 

Select matured plants with full pods. Pull up, 
preferably in the early morning. Place plants in 
a dry, well-aired place until seed are hard. Shell 
and spread seed in layers to dry. 

Corn. 

Select ripe ears from plant which has produced 
two good cars. The ears should be well filled with 
kernels closely set and well developed. Strip 
down husks and hang ears in a dry, well ventil- 
ated place until thoroughly dry. Leave on cob 
until used. 

Lettuce. 

When first seed heads open, pull plants, put 
heads into paper bags and hang in a dry place 
until seed are ripened and drop out of heads. 

Storage of Seeds. 

Put heavy seed, such as beans and peas, 
in cloth bags ; smaller seed in paper bags. 
Label each bag carefully, inside and out, 
as to contents. To protect seed from mice 
put the bags in tin boxes. An upstairs 
room or attic room is a very good place in 
which to store seed. The room must be 
dry and well ventilated to prevent molding. 



G)Id frame.- _. 

Community gardening 

Commutiity storage 

Continuous crops 

Cultivation 



DISEASES AND INSECTS 

FERTILIZERS— 

Commercial 

Compost 

Green main;. 
IXDOOR PLA.XTl.NG 

Transplanting 

Plan of garden 
PLANTING— 

Fall crops 

Hotbed 

Succession of crops 

Table for planting 

Time _ 

POT ATO Es- 
crow in g __. 

Diseases and insects 

Storage 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

Page. 



POTATOES, SWEET- 

Growing ; 

Storage _.- _ 

Rotation of crops 

SEED— 

Quantity to buy 



Saving for next year 

Storage 



Testing before planting 

SPRAYING - 

.SOIL- 

Acidity 



Page. 

14 

30 

5 



Preparation 

Testing before planting 



STORAGE— 

Apples _ 

Cellar ...... . 

Outdoor cellar _ 

Pit 

Seed 

Various methods 
Tools 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




After J. N. Darling, in New York Tribune. 



NATIONAL WAR GARDEN COMMISSION 

Affiliated with the Conservation Department of the American 
Forestry Association 

THE MARYLAND BUILDING 
WASHINGTON. D. C. 



Charles Lathrop Pack, President. Percival S. Ridsdale, Secretary. 



Luther Burbank, Calif. 

Dr. Charles W. Eliot, Mass. 

Dr. Irving Fisher, Conn. 

Fred H. Goff. Ohio. 

John H.\ys Hammond, Mass. 

Fairfax Harrison, Va. 

Hon. Myron T. Herkick, Ohio. 



Dr. John Grier Hibben, N. J. 

Emerson McMillin, N. Y. 

Charles Lathrop Pack, N. J. 

A. W Shaw. 111. 

Mrs. John Dickinson Sherman, 111. 

Capt. J. B. White, Mo. 

Hon. James Wilson, Iowa. 



Additional copies of this Manual may be obtained upon request. 

We also issue a Manual on the Home Canning and Home Drying ol Vegetables and 
Fruits, with directions for Pickling, Fermenting and other forms of Household Conservation. 
Copies may be obtained upon request. 

For single copies of these manuals no charge is made. Organizations may obtain small 
quantities without charge and larger quantities at nominal charge. 

A list of manufacturers of Canning and Drying devices and equipment may be ob- 
tained upon request. 



.}J3 



^fB^^V OF CONGRESS 







u^ii; — ^* r^^ 



